S. Epatha Merkerson says NBC had a problem with her afro before ‘Law & Order’ role
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The actress spent 17 seasons on the series, but says her journey to the role began with a network executive’s objection to her natural hair.
S. Epatha Merkerson became one of television’s most recognizable Black actresses thanks to her 17-season run as Lt. Anita Van Buren on “Law & Order.” But before she landed the role, she says NBC had a problem with the way she wore her hair.
In an interview with PEOPLE, Merkerson recalled that producer Dick Wolf told her the network objected to her “big afro” during the casting process. Rather than allow the criticism to derail the opportunity, Merkerson said she went home and changed her hairstyle.
“[Dick] called me in, and he said, ‘It’s your hair. NBC has a problem with your hair. I said, ‘What do you mean?’ Because I had a big afro, and I said, ‘It’s the hair? I’ll go home and fix it, and I’ll come back,’ and I did just that,” she shared in the interview.
The change apparently made the difference. Merkerson returned with a different hairstyle and was ultimately cast as Van Buren, a character she would play from 1993 through the original series finale in 2010. She first appeared on “Law & Order” in 1991 in a guest role before becoming a series regular.
“When I walked in, he just looked at me and he said, ‘That’s Van Buren.’ That’s how it started. My relationship with Dick, it was an immediate connection.”
Van Buren went on to become one of the show’s most enduring characters, with Merkerson appearing in hundreds of episodes and becoming a defining presence in a television landscape that offered relatively few Black women in positions of authority.
The story also illustrates the complicated reality of working in an entertainment industry where Black performers have frequently faced pressure to modify their natural appearance to fit mainstream expectations.
Yet Merkerson’s recollection does not appear to have soured her relationship with Wolf. In the interview, she spoke warmly about the producer and the opportunities he provided throughout her career.
After “Law & Order” ended, Wolf brought Merkerson into another long-running NBC franchise. She joined “Chicago Med” in 2015 as Sharon Goodwin, a role she continues to play.
Merkerson has said she has appeared in more than 500 episodes across Wolf’s television shows, making her one of the most enduring performers in his television universe.